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With Kelley MBA, Former Engineer’s Career Takes Off

Krithika Jeyaraman MBA'07

Manager of Special Projects, Liberty Mutual

Boston, Massachusetts

“My Supply Chain and Global Management Academy training focused on business processes and management and their application in geographically and politically different climates. It’s something that I firmly believe has helped me in this role.”

As a manager of special projects at Liberty Mutual in Boston, Krithika Jeyaraman leads data analytics efforts for process changes and improvement initiatives and works with senior management at corporate headquarters and across different states and regions of the country.

“The insurance industry is highly regulated and is therefore greatly dependant on the state or region in which we do business,” says Jeyaraman. “My role requires a thorough understanding of not only the overall strategy and direction of our business, but also the ability to understand and adapt to the constraints and requirements in the different states or regions. In that sense, my job is similar to working in an international environment that requires successful execution of company strategy within local constraints.”

She owes her career success—at the company for which she most wanted to work —to the experience and connections she gained through Kelley’s MBA program in management and international business.

Jeyaraman first learned of Kelley when she was doing online research about MBA programs from her home in Chennai, India. “I kept seeing reviews in magazines like Business Week. I also went to several MBA forums where people discuss business schools, and Kelley kept coming up as a top school.”

After she was admitted, Kelley sent Jeyaraman information about everything from housing and public transportation to financial aid and curriculum planning. She loved Bloomington’s peaceful lifestyle from the start, but as a former engineer with a scant business background, Jeyaraman was a little overwhelmed by her intensive five-day “jump start” introduction program at Kelley.

“I took everything offered during the five-day program and it was very intense. But as soon as I started making friends, I was much less homesick than I thought I would be.”

“My academy training focused on business processes and management and their application in geographically and politically different climates. It’s something that I firmly believe has helped me in this role,” she says. “I challenge myself to continually learn and adapt to the new environment here. The constant need to be flexible, learn, and adjust, is something that I believe will help me in my long term, where I see myself in a general management role, managing a product or line in a geographically diverse environment.”

Her proudest accomplishment at Kelley was seeing her team take third place in a Supply Chain Case Competition at Purdue University. The win followed an uncertain start in which teammates critiqued her for not participating more in her first case competition.

“In my first case competition group, I took a ‘wait and watch’ approach that I later learned was not appreciated by everyone! Their feedback was very helpful for me. I became much more involved after that and took on leadership roles in a couple of projects.”

Jeyaraman initially connected with Liberty Mutual through an MBA networking event in Atlanta in the fall of her second year in the program. She had a job offer a month later. “I also ended up with an offer from another company. It was pretty common for my classmates to receive two to three offers upon graduation.”

Jeyaraman’s younger brother has followed in her footsteps, joining the Kelley MBA program. Her parents in Chennai miss their kids but are bursting with pride at their accomplishments.

“My parents are pretty proud of the fact that I’m the first person in the family to have completed my advanced studies overseas.”